Imperfectly Perfect
by Niki Bogwater
Summary: Malon's imperfect. But she's perfect to him anyways. Oneshot. A companion piece to "As Long as He is Happy," but can be read as a standalone. For SilentPony.


"Malon?"

I turn to see him looking at me, gentle concern dominating his expression. "I'm alright," I tell him quickly, squeezing his hand. "I'm just...a little out of place, here." Really, it's more than _a little_. My hair is loose, my wedding dress is pathetically plain, and just under the undecorated hem, I'm wearing my usual rugged work boots, since I was able to escape the clutches of the painfully high-heeled shoes the Princess gave me. Meanwhile, I'm surrounded by lords, ladies, knights, and dames all sporting the latest and most extravagant styles, and slathered in costly makeup. I don't know any of them, and I'm not sure why they attended my wedding. Link swears he's seen maybe five people that he recognized throughout the entire course of the evening, and all of them were related to me.

He knows. He always knows. It's like there's a bit of him inside me all the time, watching out for me, reading my thoughts like a guardian angel. I'm bad at lying in general, but there aren't any secrets to be kept from Link. I can tell he's completely seen through my facade, because he lets go of my hand and winds an arm around my waist, protectively pulling me closer. He doesn't need to say anything.

The fact is, I can't believe I'm here with him. Link is a hero, the savior of the realm, the most eligible bachelor in Hyrule (well, he used to be, anyways), and he's picked me to spend the rest of his life with. Out of all the swooning admirers he has, any one of which could have given him ten times more than me, he picked me.

I'll never be able to understand it, even if I did sums for years. And I'm pretty good at sums.

I can hear the orchestra begin a slow dance, an old classic that's played at all the major balls in the palace. It's a soft, dreamy tune, with a perky melody and soothing rhythm. Suddenly, Link is dragging me to the center of the dance floor, grinning at my bewildered expression as he takes my hand.

"What-" I begin to laugh.

"One dance, Mal. You promised. Then we can go home." He starts leading me, swaying a bit slower than everyone else, keeping time with the music all the same. I glance around, seeing all the practiced nobles in their pointed shoes ease into the dance naturally, as though they've done it a thousand times, which they probably have. I see Princess Zelda watching us, with a sad but contented smile on her perfect, red lips. I feel the tendrils of awkwardness and insecurity begin to curl in my stomach, but then I feel his strong hand release mine for a moment and touch my chin gently, catching my gaze again and locking me inside it.

And of course, that's all I need to melt into the music. Suddenly, it doesn't matter that I'm a peasant girl with no Rupees to my name. It doesn't matter that I have a far-too-generous helping of freckles on my cheeks and shoulders, and can't afford to cover it with silky cream like the elite women of society do. It doesn't matter that all I can give him is my heart, stubborn as a mule but filled to the brim with love, and a worn-out farm with too much milk to be considered a prime dining opportunity. I'm perfect to him.

I let my head lean against his chest, his heart working in sync with the music, and I know everything's perfect when I feel him rest his cheek against the side of my head.

We don't go home until after the seventh waltz.

**A/N: So, I know this isn't "Sweet Sanctuary," or "Luna's First Day," or anything else I told you guys I was working on, but I got a review for "As Long as He is Happy" that really inspired me (love you, SilentPony!). This is my first attempt at writing in Malon's POV, so let me know if I totally screwed it up.**

**So the moral of the story is, Reviews = Happiness for both readers and writers. Keep that in mind if you think of something to say to me. I read every single one on every single story, no matter how old it is, whether it's complete or not, or whether you're a sheep or a chicken. :3**

**Ciao!**

**-Niki Bogwater**

**P.S.: Want to hear the song Malon and Link danced to? Look up "Super Mario Galaxy 2 World 1 Theme." It really helped me get in the mood for writing this.**

**Afterthought: **

**MY FIZZPIDGEONING GOODNESS, ISN'T THERE _ANY _MALINK ART OUT THERE THAT ISN'T PORN? **

**Yeah, my search for good cover art didn't go well. If you have any interest in sending me your own art for any of my stories, PLEASE PM me. Seriously, the entire Internet database of Malink art at my fingertips, and they're all bikini shots? WHERE DID YOU FAIL ME, GOOGLE?**


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